Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and
SIPROTEC 4 relays
This document describes the important Event, Trip and Oscillographic (Waveform) records available in SIPROTEC
COMPACT and SIPROTEC 4 devices. The options for saving, printing and deleting log files are then discussed.
Event log
The Event Log (also referred to as the Operational Indication Buffer) operates continuously and records status
changes of all the information items that are set to be monitored. The time resolution of the log is 1 ms. Up to 200
Events can be stored in the cyclic buffer, when then the oldest Event is overwritten as new Events occur.
Figure 1. An Event Log showing 1ms time-stamping
The maximum number of Events that can be stored varies per device. The buffer memory is battery backed in case of
loss of DC supply to the device.
To map an item to the Event Log, map its destination in the Configuration Matrix to the Operational Indication
Buffer. Events can be mapped to be recorded at Incoming (rising edge) or both Incoming and Outgoing (rising and
falling edge).
Figure 2. Mapping an information item to be recorded in the Event Log (Operational Indication Buffer)
Each information item in the matrix has both a Short Text and a Long Text description – the short text is used when
the log is viewed on the relay front-display, the long text is used when viewed in DIGSI.
Internal items also have an associated Number. This reference number is given in the Configuration Matrix and is
useful when searching for the item in the relay manual. Numbers are consistent across the SIPROTEC range.
To view the Event Log via the relay front-panel, select Annunciation->Event Log from the menu.
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 1 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Figure 3. Access to the Event Log via the menu
It is also possible to map a Function Key to allow direct access to the Event Log. This is done via the Set Function Keys
menu, available from the Configuration Matrix.
Figure 4. To set Function Key 1 to display the event log, use the Set Function Keys menu item available when
viewing the Configuration Matrix
To view the event-log in DIGSI when connected on-line to the relay, select Event Log from the Annunciation group.
When connected on-line to the device, only the log file stored in the device is available. When the setting file is
opened off-line any previously saved versions of the event log will also be visible.
Figure 5. Viewing event logs in DIGSI. When online, the version of the log in the relay is viewable. When connected
offline, all previously saved versions of the log are available.
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 2 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Trip Log
A Trip log is started when a protection element picks-up and remains active (recording) until the fault condition
disappears. Any items that are mapped to the Trip Log and change status while the fault is active will be recorded.
A maximum of eight separate Trip Logs can be held in the relay. These are held in a cyclic buffer with oldest Trip Log
being automatically over-written when a new fault occurs.
The first item in the fault log has the absolute time-stamp of the beginning of the fault. The time recorded for each
subsequent item is the number of milliseconds since this fault-trigger time.
Figure 6. A fault log showing event time-tagging as milliseconds since event trigger time
Selection of items to be recorded in the fault log is similar to mapping to the event log – the abbreviation for trip log
column is T.
Figure 7. Mapping the overcurrent pickup and trip to the Trip Log. In this example the pickup is set to be recorded
at both Incoming and Outgoing (rising and falling-edge) while the Trip is set to record only on Incoming.
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 3 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Deleting all mapping in a matrix column
The default setting file from DIGSI contains a number of points already mapped to the Event Log and Trip Log. To clear these,
right-click on the abbreviation letter at the top of the column and select ‘Delete configurations at Operational Indication Buffer’.
Before using this option, it is recommended to check what items have been mapped – some items can be useful for later
diagnostics. Some pre-defined items can’t be deleted. DIGSI will provide a message indicating how many can and can’t be
deleted.
Figure 8. Deleting all items mapped to the Event Log
Access to the Trip Log from the relay front panel uses a similar method as shown for the Event Log in Figure 3. Once
the Event Log menu is accessed, a list of the last 8 trip logs is available (using the down-arrow to scroll if necessary).
Pressing the right-arrow key (or Enter) allows viewing any individual Trip Log.
Figure 9. Access to a Trip Log via the front display
Within DIGSI access to the Trip Log is via the Annunciation group (Figure 10). When connected on-line to the relay
the last 8 events stored in the relay memory will be available for display. Double-clicking on any of these allows
detailed view of the log. When the setting file is opened off-line, any previously saved Trip Logs will be available.
Figure 10. Viewing the available Trip Logs in DIGSI
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 4 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Oscillographic Fault Records (Waveform Capture)
Up to 8 Oscillographic (waveform) Fault Records can be captured stored in each relay. The records can be then saved
to DIGSI for later viewing in SIGRA or any software compatible with the COMTRADE standard format.
To enable the Fault Recorder it must be enabled in the Device Configuration (Figure 11).
Figure 11. Enabling Oscillographic Fault Records in the Device Configuration
The analogues channels that are sampled are pre-defined and vary depending on the relay model. The total
recording time and sampling rate of some commonly used relays is shown in table 1. Binary signals can also be
recorded with each Oscillographic fault record and viewed in SIGRA. The binary signals recorded can be selected
using DIGSI “Properties” tab for each item in the Configuration Matrix (Figure 12).
Relay
Sampling rate
Total recording
Model
(Hz)
time (s)
7SJ80
1000
18
7SD80
1000
18
7RW80
1000
18
7SJ61
800
20
7SJ62
800
20
7SJ63
800
5
7SJ64
800
20
7SD610
1000
15
7SA522
1000
15
7UT612
600
5
7UT613
800
5
Table 1. Waveform sampling rate and total recording time capability of some commonly used relays
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 5 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Figure 12. Select an information-item from the matrix to be recorded in the Oscillographic Fault Record by right
clicking on the item and selecting ‘Select message in fault record’
Waveform capture is usually set to begin at the pickup of an enabled protection element. This behaviour can be
modified via the ‘Waveform Capture’ setting in the Oscillographic Fault Records tab in DIGSI (Figure 13).
Figure 13. Settings for wave-form capture times and recording options
The setting options are:



Save-With-Pickup (Recording starts and records are saved every time a protection element picks-up)
Save-With-Trip (Recording starts on pickup but the event is only saved if the pickup leads to a trip)
Start-With-Trip (Recording only begins when a trip is issued).
The maximum length of an individual fault record and pre-trigger and post-fault recording times are also set in this
tab – the effects of these settings can be seen in Figure 14.
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 6 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Figure 14. An Oscillographic Fault Record showing Pre-trigger and Post-fault recording times
Oscillographic Fault Records can’t be directly viewed from the relay front panel, but they are associated with Trip Log
entries by a common Network Fault Number. This is an automatically assigned number that increments with each
fault record capture. A Trip Log and an Oscillographic Waveform record with the same Network Fault Number refer
to the same event.
In DIGSI, records can be viewed via the Oscillographic Records item. Selecting this when connected online to a relay
shows the records saved within the relay. Selecting an individual record will display the record using SIGRA. When a
setting file is opened off-line, any previously saved events are visible.
Waveform captures can be manually triggered when connected on-line in DIGSI by the Test menu (Figure 15). This is
a handy commissioning and test feature.
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 7 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Figure 15. Manually triggering an Oscillographic Fault Record using the DIGSI Test Menu
It is also possible to set the relay so that an event record is triggered when a specified binary input is activated. This
is done by mapping the input to the >Trig. Wave.Cap item in the Configuration Matrix.
Figure 16. Triggering Event Record from binary input
Retrieving and saving Fault Records
The simplest way to save all the event logs available in the relay is to connect to it via the front port via a ‘Plug and
Play’ connection. From DIGSI Manager the ‘Device->DIGSI (plug and play)’ is reached via the Device menu. Once
DIGSI is connected to the relay, when the setting file is saved (via the Save icon in the top-left corner), DIGSI prompts
with ‘Do you also want to save process data’. If ‘Yes’ is selected then DIGSI will download and save the Event Log,
Trip Log and Oscillographic Fault records. It will also save a snapshot of all the available metering values in the
“setting file”. For a post event forensic analysis, it is very valuable to have the fault records and relay settings.
Figure 17. The prompt that appears when saving a setting file retrieved using the Plug and Play connection option.
Selecting yes causes DIGSI to retrieve and save the Event Log, Trip Logs and Oscillographic Records as well as
snapshots of the metering data of the device
An alternative method is available if the setting file for the device is already available in DIGSI – this option works
either via a local or remote serial connection or via an Ethernet connection. The command to use is ‘Read Out
Process Data’, available by right-clicking on the setting file (Figure 18) from within DIGSI Manager.
After saving the process data, a prompt asks if you wish to save setting data also. Selecting yes to this will retrieve
the settings out of the physical relay device and save them to this DIGSI setting file. If select ‘no’ then the settings in
the existing file remain and only the process data is updated in DIGSI.
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 8 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Figure 18. Reading and saving all the ‘Process Data’ from a device. This includes the Event Log, Trip Logs and
Oscillographic Records as well as snapshots of the metering data of the device
When connected on-line to the relay, it is also possible to save an individual Event or Oscillographic record to the PC
copy of the setting file by right-clicking and selecting ‘Save’ (Figure 19). This record will then be added to those
already saved and will be
available for
viewing when the setting file is
opened
Offline.
Figure 19. Saving an event Log to the off-line DIGSI file
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 9 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Exporting and printing fault records
Oscillographic records can be saved external to DIGSI native file format, via the ‘Export’ option in the context-menu
accessed by right-clicking on a record. The record is exported in COMTRADE format as three separate files.
Figure 20. Exporting an Oscillographic Fault Record in COMTRADE format
To print out or save Event or Trip logs, select File-Print. This brings up a Dialog to select the type of data to print –
either from the currently open window, or other data from the presently open setting-file. From within this dialog,
records can either printed or saved to .pdf or other formats.
Figure 21. To print Event log data, select Print from the File menu. Clicking on the Annunciation option brings up a
list of the type of event data for printing
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 10 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz
Copying fault records between setting files
DIGSI allows copying Event and fault data between setting files so that all data associated with a relay can be stored
in one central setting file. This is done by opening both setting files off-line and opening the same view in each file.
Event Logs, Trip Logs and Oscillographic records can be copied by drag-and-drop between the two open windows.
Figure 22. To copy a Trip Log between setting files, open both setting files off-line to the Trip Log view. Log files
can be copied between devices by drag-and-drop.
Deleting fault records
Event and Trip logs can be cleared from the relay by using the menu option: Annunciation-> Set/Reset Event Log.
The password will need to be entered before the logs are cleared. From DIGSI, right-click on the log to clear and
select Delete. This will delete the event log both from the relay memory and the setting file. Note that deleting the
Trip Logs also deletes any Oscillographic Fault records and will reset the Network Fault Number.
Figure 23. Deleting the Event Log from a relay using DIGSI
Event and fault data is also lost when a relay is “initialised” or the internal backup-battery is replaced.
More Information:
For further information on event and fault recording refer to sections 6.1 and 6.2 of the SIPROTEC 4 System Manual.
Other information on SIPROTEC devices can be found at
http://www.hvpower.co.nz/TechnicalLibrary/LineProtection.html
or by contacting HV Power.
HV Power File: Event and Fault records in SIPROTEC COMPACT and SIPROTEC
Originator:
Nick Bowe
HV Power Measurements & Protection Ltd
Unit 4, 1 Porters Ave, Eden Terrace, Auckland
P O Box 26-074, Epsom, Auckland 1030, New Zealand
4 relays.docx
Page 11 of 11
Version 1. October 2013
Tel:
Fax:
Email:
+64-9- 377 2001
+64-9- 302 2142
info@hvpower.co.nz